41 Unbelievable AirBNB Nightmares

We've all probably heard about our friend's AirBNB experiences. Heck, we may have even been on a vacation where we've stayed at an AirBNB. But what exactly isAirBNB? In a nutshell, it is pretty much an online marketplace to find lodging for say, a vacation, or a business trip. When you're just not into the idea of a hotel or motel, AirBNB can be your solution. On their website and their app, you can find a plethora of amazing places to stay. Sometimes even cheaper than hotel prices. There are some pretty sweet places that you can find to stay! On the flipside, if you have an extra room or a guest house that is empty, you can rent that out via the AirBNB website, and others can find lodging at your place.
Nine times out of ten, things usually go pretty smoothly with AirBNB rentals. Folks get to stay at a really awesome place for a little bit, and others get to make a little extra cash for renting out their home. But like with anything, with much success can come plenty of despair as well. Not everyone's stay at an AirBNB is pleasant, and the same goes for the hosts. Not all guests at their AirBNB rentals have been courteous of their surroundings. Take a trip with us while we explore some of the worst AirBNB nightmares that have ever occurred.

Hell Of A Party

Canadian couple Star and Mark King were renting out their home in Sage Hill, Calgary in Canada. They believed that they were renting their home out to four people who were planning on staying in the town for a wedding. But they were led astray by the occupants. When the Kings had returned back to their home, they were absolutely flabbergasted to see what had been done to their home. Soon, the Kings had heard from their neighbors that there was a party bus in front of their home with no less than 100 people. By the time they came back home, the police were already there and had been a previous seven times. It turns out their home had been used for a party-turned-orgy. Condoms clogged the toilets, while mayonnaise and barbecue sauce was smeared everywhere - including the ceilings. AirBNB was contacted and is believed to be footing the cost of approximately $50,000 in repairs.

Scary Encounter

Alavia Khawaja lives with her sister, and she typically rents out an extra room in her apartment via AirBNB. What she thought would be a harmless rental, went quite awry. Khawaja rented the room to a Leonard Jackson. She said that everything seemed normal. That is until she came home. She found the lock to her bedroom door picked, and photos of any male friends she had thrown away. Not to mention that he went through her closet as well. He demanded a refund, and then Khawaja learned that Jackson had even gone as far as to steal $500 from her. After kicking him out and calling the police, he continued to harass her. You can read her whole harrowing experience in this Twitter thread.

Ick Factor

Annie Gabillet and her husband, as well as two other guests, were scheduled to stay at an AirBNB that they had rented in Sydney on Bondi Beach for twelve days. They arrived at their destination late at night and ready to get some rest. However, the pungent stink of what smelled like "wet dog" greeted them as soon as they walked in the door. But both Gabillet and her husband thought little of it, opening a window to air the room out and lighting a candle to mask the scent. It wasn't until the morning light that illuminated their worst nightmares. What they thought was "wet dog" smell, was likely the mold covering the walls. Not to mention cobwebs and dead bugs lying everywhere. To top it all off, there was no hot water, and the water was brown. Ultimately, Gabillet found the AirBNB customer service line and was given a refund for the nights not stayed, and found a much cleaner new residence to stay in.

Candid Camera

Derek Starnes and his wife, of Indiana, were getting all ready to settle into their AirBNB rental in Longboat Key, Florida. If it was not for Starnes eagle-eye, they may have just missed the camera that was recording them. He had noticed a tiny black hole in the master bedrooms smoke detector. Upon closer inspection, Starnes realized exactly what it was. The couple even found another camera in the living room. They alerted the police, as well as AirBNB. The property owner, Wayne Natt was charged with video voyeurism. The surprising thing about this is that Natt had been renting out his property on AirBNB for approximately 2 years and had over 40 positive reviews. It makes you wonder who else and how long he'd been recording.

Pick Up After Yourselves!

It is quite common for those with an extra room or two in their home to want to rent it out via AirBNB. It is a good way to pick up a little extra cash to put away for a rainy day! However, it seems that not all tenants keep things clean, if you will. They do not pick up after themselves, and they make a mess of the room that they've stayed in. Take this room as an example. This woman got the "guest from hell." She had a newborn at the time and had faith that her tenants would be cleanly. She was wrong.

Please Leave...Please?

In 2015, California resident Poonam Sandhu decided that she wanted to rent out the master bedroom in the back of her home. A couple had paid for two weeks. However, when the third week came around, the couple approached Sandhu and asked if they could pay with cash day by day instead. Believing things were going pretty well, Sandhu agreed to this arrangement. However, it wasn't long until the couple stopped paying entirely. Not only that, but the couple were even using Sandhu's possessions. Plus, they were constantly fighting behind closed doors. After several calls to the police about the fighting, Sandhu asked them to leave. But they refused. She eventually had to pay them $1,000 to leave her home.

Bleh Breakfast

It is quite upsetting when you are essentially inviting someone to stay in your home. The least that a guest can do is to show a little respect! The best way possible to do that is to make sure to clean up after themselves before they leave. It's so simple. According to the poster of this photo, the entire house was left a mess, including the bathroom. You can only imagine how every other room looked, just by looking at this photo! From that half-eaten whatever-is-in-that-bowl to the McDonald's bag full of garbage just sitting on the counter, it's simply disgusting!

Just Ew...

Sometimes it isn't always the guests that are the problem on AirBNB. There are times when the hosts are not totally honest about their rental and are just out to make a quick buck on the fly. Take this mattress, for example. We are not even sure what we are looking at here! Is it a wine stain? Juice? You know, we would rather not think about it at all. The host expected their guests to sleep on this dirty, filthy mattress. That's just nasty, in more ways than one. It's a really good thing that the guests looked underneath the sheet!

That's Trash

The guests who stayed at this AirBNB rental did not seem to know where to throw away their trash. So, they just left it at the front entryway for the host to take care of. This was not even regular trash, like food scraps or paper. Among whatever else was in those bags, the owner learned that there were feces in those bags (animal, we're assuming). It gets even better for the poor host who had to haul these to the dumpster. The bags broke on the way there. Not only that, but the guests also stole a handheld vacuum and left broken glass by the front entryway.

Oh, Hey There

Boston residents Jaleesa Jackson and Chiedozie Uwandu, both anesthesiology residents in large Boston hospitals, usually work around 14-15 hours a day. They figured that as a couple, they could use a little rest and relaxation on the west coast, over in California. They found a dream rental with what AirBNB dubbed a "super-host." They had great ratings, so the couple was excited. They were even greeted with a bottle of chilled bottle of wine. However, things quickly turned sour when the couple awoke to loud knocking on the bedroom door in the middle of the night. It was the host, ranting and raving about someone named Kevin. He responded to the couple that "life was too short to give them an explanation." Just when they thought everything had died down, the next night, a man came flying through their bedroom window. Who was it but AirBNB's acclaimed "super-host." Talk about a real-life nightmare.

MaryJane

Imagine getting all settled into your AirBNB rental. Unpacking your belongings, putting away your clothes, making something to eat and settling in for the night. Then, out of nowhere and all of a sudden, the police come bursting into the house and arrest you and your family members. One family from Sydney, Australia, who were vacationing on Australia's Gold Coast, had unknowingly rented out a home that was used to grow marijuana. Of course, they were released and were able to enjoy the rest of their stay in a hotel room. But one can only imagine how shaken up they probably were.

Happy Birthday?

One family found themselves in one strange situation, for sure. They were vacationing in Dublin, and had found an AirBNB over a casino. Three bedrooms, sounds nice, right? The best part for the renter? Staying above a casino meant that they found dropped money every morning. That may not sound like a nightmare, but what comes next is just nasty. When their daughter opened her nightstand drawer, she found a half-eaten birthday cake. We get that they were saving it for later, but find a better hiding spot for it next time, geez. Oh, and the best part? Paying $210 a night for a place with no hot water.

Body In The Back

In 2016, a group of friends had rented out a beautiful home in Paris. It had seven bedrooms, a swimming pool, and a decomposing body in the backyard. Their festivities were quickly put on halt. The police were called and the group was questioned and cleared of any wrongdoing. The authorities were able to determine that the woman was about forty years old and caucasian. The family of seven that rented the house to the group that found the body was on vacation at the time of discovery. However, they did say that the property is not fenced in and that anyone could have placed the body there.

Leering Leslie

Even a seasoned AirBNB renter can run into some problems. However, problems doesn't even begin to describe what two women went through when they ran into a real creeper. A woman and her sister were looking to stay one day in an apartment. The renter had done their work and found a place to stay. The profile photo of the person renting the apartment showed a woman on a balcony with long blonde hair. They thought this was Leslie, the person who owned the place. However, when they showed up, they were greeted by a man who immediately told them Leslie was a unisex name. They thought this creepy, but it was only for one night, so they didn't think much of it. However, "Leslie" insisted on the two women go out clubbing with him. After declining him, they wanted to turn in for the night. It wasn't until later that night that their nightmare began. Leslie had made their way into the bedroom they were staying in and just standing over the two, swaying back and forth, clearly drunk. Luckily, the women booked it right out of there, quickly leaving in a cab and headed to the airport.

Crazy With Concrete

Finding your dream AirBNB rental can be pretty exciting. But there is no way it's in your budget, right? In 2016, a family went vacationing in Belize. A woman had found what she thought was a gorgeous AirBNB and was excited to find it was in their budget to rent it. Everything was great until the family arrived at the rental. Everything was made of concrete. Even the couch was made of concrete. The beds too were made of concrete, with just a foam topper. They reached out to the owner, but to no avail. They did not get a response. After the sixth day of their rental, they had had enough and checked out of there and into a regular hotel room.

Locked In

In the early morning of July 4, 2015, a mom's worst nightmare was unfolding a whole country away from her son. Jacob Lopez, a 19-year-old from Massachusetts was in Madrid, Spain. He was frantically texting his mother because he didn't know what else to do. His AirBNB host had locked him in the fourth-floor room he was staying in, ordering him to perform sexual acts on them. His mother's phone call's to AirBNB led to the company telling her to call the police in Madrid, which also ended up being a dead end, as the phone kept going to a recording. Ultimately, Lopez eventually persuaded his host to let him go, after being sexually assaulted.

Flush It Down

One host was unpleasantly surprised when their guests checked out of their rental. The host typically rents out their home when they are out of town on business, in order to make a little extra money on the side. A couple had booked to stay at the home for two weeks while the host was out of town. Well, when the host got back and the couple had checked out, they did their normal assessment of the apartment after having guests over. A rancid smell coming from the bathroom took them aback. Apparently, the country the couple was from, they don't flush used toilet paper, but rather stick it in the trash bin. The host made sure to let any potential future renters that they indeed can flush the toilet.

It Rubs The Lotion On The Skin

One host had to contend with a bit of a nasty mess when it came to their tenant. After checking their guest in, everything seemed to go smoothly. However, the next morning, when the host went to use their bathroom, they found the floor full of what looked like flakes. They shrugged it off and cleaned it up, thinking that their tenant had spilled something and forgot to clean it up. But when it happened a second time, the host immediately spoke to their guest, who told them they forgot to tell the host that they had severe dermatitis, thus the skin flakes all over the place. The host told the tenant to please do a better job of cleaning up after themselves. However, the tenant still walked all about the rental, scratching their skin, leaving a trail of flakes in their wake. After checkout, the whole place needed a deep cleaning.

Furreal

When guests chose to stay in an AirBNB listing, they were getting a little more than they bargained for. While they had known that there was a cat at the residence, and they were to feed it while the host was gone, there were other things about the pretty kitty that they did not know. The cat had to be medicated three times daily and tended to use the bathtub to relieve itself, rather than the litter box. Not only that, but the guests had to endure text messages from the host saying, "HAVE YOU PET THE CAT TODAY? IF THE CAT MEOWS, SHE NEEDS LOVE. DO NOT USE THE CURTAINS." It doesn't mention what was wrong with the curtains, so we're left wondering on that one.

Lewd Nude

A couple decided to list a room in their apartment on AirBNB. They didn't know they would be seeing a little bit more of their guest than they wanted to. The woman that they rented to had a tendency to walk around their place. Nothing wrong with exploring new surroundings. Doing it in the nude, however, is a totally different story. A Reddit user by the username McAwesomeBoss said, "This girl just absolutely never had clothes on in the apartment. She just walked around in the nude, sat down on the couch and talked to us nude... as if she wasn't nude. When she first walked out of the bedroom naked, my girlfriend and I sort of looked at each other oddly without saying a word. But just let it go as she just carried on normally and chatted with us about our lives, the city, and her plans for the weekend."

24-Hour Party People

This one is a host's nightmare, and one horrid way to ring in 2018. When an Ohio man had rented out a room to a fellow AirBNB'r for forty dollars a night, they thought that it would be a nice and quiet new year. It was anything but. The guest advertised that he was hosting a New Year's Eve party, even going so far as to charge $5 a person. He ended up cramming approximately 250 people into the room he was renting. Once the homeowner found out what the guest was up to, he locked himself in his bedroom and phoned the police. The party-thrower was faced with criminal charges, which included disorderly conduct.

No-Fun Summer Break

Two British girls decided to go take their summer break in Costa de Sol, Spain and had booked an AirBNB instead of a hotel. When they arrived at their rental, they found that it reeked of alcohol and not only that, there were already two girls sleeping in the bed that they were supposed to be sleeping in. Their host said that they were out of the country, but that their cousin would be along soon to help them. However, the girl's suspect that the "cousin" had actually been partying, and been acting shady. In the end, the girls had some of their belongings stolen, and when they had asked for them back, the other girls got rowdy and shouted at them. Eventually, they had some of their belongings returned to them, via air, meaning they were thrown at the girls. They immediately left and went to the local police station, with a reported £1000 in theft.

"Not" A Party

A Reddit user by the name of capilot tells of great damage that befell the property that he and his girlfriend had purchased to rent out to AirBNB'rs for extra cash. One woman booked the whole home for one Saturday night. There was a strict no party rule, and that was reiterated to her several times. The guest claimed it was just going to be her, her brother and two friends coming for dinner. Sounds alright, until the hosts, who live right next door happen to hear loud music and seeing bright and colorful lights coming from the place they rented out. Then they saw people dumping ice, liquor and fruit juice into large pots. When the girlfriend confronted the renter about all the people, the tenant told her that the girlfriend was "ruining her life." The party was broken up, though the girl's two friends continued to pace the front of capilot's home calling his girlfriend rather colorful words. The authorities were eventually called and the nightmare was over.

Stolen Memories

One woman had rented her home out on AirBNB, as she was going on a business trip. Only to have it completely trashed, and many of her most valuable possessions stolen from her. The crazy thing about it all was that the tenant was corresponding back and forth with the host the whole time they were busy doing whatever the hell they wanted to. What she came home to was like a scene straight out of a horror movie. Pungent odors, dishes piled high, furniture destroyed and finally, a hole that the guests made by smashing through her locked closet door. Once they got into her closet, they took her camera, iPod, a backup hard drive with photos and journals, and her grandmother's jewelry. She also believes that they photo-copied her Social Security card and her birth certificate as well.

Pop-Up Brothel

Two women from Stockholm, Sweden had left for a four-week vacation and decided to list their apartment on AirBNB. When they arrived back home, they were shocked to find a note from the Stockholm County Police, that their home had been used as a temporary brothel. Upon re-entering their apartment, they found quite a few nasty things, like pubic hair and a bag of condoms. As it turns out, the renters (prostitutes) had been under surveillance upon entering the country. Police had well, caught them in the act of, well, their "services." The apartment owners were very uneasy upon going back into their apartment. AirBNB responded by putting them up in one of the nicer hotels in the area.

Danger, Danger

Image: iStock / Malik Evren

When a family went to vacation in Rincon, Puerto Rico, for a New Year's holiday, they rented a 2 bedroom apartment. The building was comprised of two separate units with an ocean view and a pool. Doesn't sound too bad, right? It turns out when they arrived and found the bedrooms, the one for the kids had danger signs all over the room. An exposed power accumulator was in the room, making all kinds of noises and emitting nasty smells. The host assured the parents over and over that the room was safe for sleeping and playing. Because it was a holiday week and nothing else was readily available, they had the kids sleep in the living room, and when another, much safer unit became available, they immediately moved to that one.

That's Just Crappy

When a mother and daughter went to New Orleans, they rented out two rooms in a home listed on AirBNB. Online, the place looked wonderful, but when they arrived, they were met with something entirely different then what they had seen on the internet. First, there was an airbed, not even a real bed. The bathroom was not private (ew), and the entire home smelled like dog urine and smoke. To top it all off, the host told them they had someone living in their shed in the backyard, which is totally not creepy at all. The owner's dog ended up taking a massive crap on the mom's bed, and all the host did was hand the guest's paper towels to clean it up with. Mom and daughter shared a bed that night and got up bright and early the next morning to get out of there.

Spice It Up

When a man booked an AirBNB for a weekend getaway for a little romantic time together, he wanted it with his girlfriend, not the AirBNB host. The man had booked a luxurious space for him and his girlfriend in Hampton Bay, New York. A very sweet thing to do, indeed. Things seemed to be going okay, up until the point that the host texted the man in the middle of the night asking if it was cool to try something ahem in the bedroom with them. One of the texts read "The girlfriend, she's cool, right? We do the best we can here." We can think of three words, ew, gross and what the f***?

Do You Want To Build An Igloo?

With all of this wacky weather these past few years, we've seen quite a few snowstorms, especially 2016's "Snowpocalypse." A Brooklyn man took it upon himself, along with some friends to build a makeshift igloo. Instead of playing around in it themselves, one of the men decided to list the makeshift snow-home on AirBNB. It was listed as, “Dripping with ingenuity and alt-lifestyle aura lays this Snowpocalypse’s most desirable getaway.” While the man assured the rental was big enough for two people, AirBNB ultimately made him take the listing down. We can think of two-hundred better ways to spend $200.

Pushed

For one reason or another, sometimes we can run late. It's a mistake and it happens. One shouldn't be punished for it, and one certainly should not be assaulted over it. In 2017, South African filmmaker Sibhale Knumbi was assaulted, being pushed down a flight of stairs by her AirBNB host, for being an hour late checking out. The man also made derogatory and racist remarks toward Knumbi and the friends that she was staying with. Knumbi was in Amsterdam for an art exhibit. A graphic video shows the attack and the host who shoved the filmmaker down the steep flight of stairs was arrested for attempted murder. Knumbi suffered a concussion and some internal injuries.

In The Crib

Image: iStock / Kyryl Gorlov

The thing about AirBNB is that you really do not know who you are renting to. It seems that one has to kind of trust people at face value, which can be pretty scary sometimes. One couple was in for a total nightmare with their guest. The couple had rented their apartment out to someone who was in town to attend a music festival. Everything seemed okay until the couple came back to check on their place. They found drugs in their home. But the worst part is where they found where the drugs were being stored, in their child's crib. The couple immediately kicked the guest out and purchased a brand new crib.

One Mother Of A Liar

Image: iStock / saruservice

A woman from Sydney, Australia decided that she would try out AirBNB as a host for the first time. However, after the harrowing experience she had, she probably hasn't rented since. Her guest posed as a mother who was looking for a place closer to the hospital because her child was ill. The guest called herself "Michelle," and even her profile picture was of her and her son. When the host arrived back at her apartment, the whole place was turned upside down. Heroin stained furniture, there was a strange green liquid on some of the walls, and even a crack pipe was left in a vase.

Crazy Critters

Image: iStock / Cherkas

One woman and her boyfriend were excited to rent a great house in Costa Rica. Everything was great, that was until they stepped inside the home. There was everything from ants to large spiders that were crawling around the home, especially in the bedroom they were staying in. There had even been a frog in the bathtub during one of their showers. Their host had cooked the couple a traditional Costa Rican breakfast. The only problem was when they went to put their dishes away, bugs were found to be crawling around in the rice and beans. Talk about an ick factor.

Pop-Up Wedding

Image: iStock / TankGoodnessPhoto

A woman going by the name of Lisa was host to a man who told her that he was getting married the next day. That is sweet and all, but what Lisa did not know was that the wedding was set to take place in her backyard. She woke up the next morning, rather surprised to see a gazebo, caterers, and even the wedding guests on her property. Needless to say, it was probably pretty awkward having to ask everyone to leave. We're just venturing a guess here, but her guest probably did not get married that day, after all.

Clever Marketing Ploy

Image: iStock / Phoenixns

A man rented out a room to a young woman. Now, mind you, the man renting out the room was not looking for anything besides a little extra money by renting out a room on AirBNB. The guest, who was very drunk, came into the man's room while he was sleeping, and tried to sneak into the bed with him. He was not having any of that and told her to go use the room she rented. She leaves, and everything seemed normal again. That is, until approximately fifteen minutes later when she burst into the man's bedroom and attempted to try and sell the guy a product that she peddles.

Born In The U.S.A.

Image: iStock / Nastco

This is a rather bizarre tale. One very pregnant woman, who according to the host was "rather wealthy," decided to rent out an AirBNB for the sole purpose of giving birth there. Yes, you read that correctly. The guest wanted to give birth in the rental. The woman, who was not from the United States gave birth in the rental to ensure her child's United States citizenship. We think that this is probably not the most ethical way of doing things, especially when you are trying to gain citizenship. Not to mention that there were so very many things could have gone wrong, medically speaking.

Gone To The Dogs

Image: iStock / Ishkabibbel

A man by the name of Mike Silverman often used AirBNB, and never had any previous problems. He had stayed in places like Alaska and South America. So when he stayed at a rental in Argentina, he did not think that he would have anything but another pleasant experience. When he booked the rental, it said nothing about any pets in the home. But when Silverman arrived, he was greeted by a Rottweiler, and wanting to be friendly, he went to pat the dog on the head. Silverman got quite the surprise when the dog bit down on his hand and left a 6-inch gash that needed to be stitched up. Silverman had to pay for his medical care in cash.

The Party From Hell

Image: iStock / SeventyFour

Despite having a 'no parties' rule, one Canadian AirBNB host got way more than they bargained for when they rented out their home to a guest planning to do just that. A party was thrown at the home, reportedly packed to capacity with people, with kids as young as thirteen in attendance. Everything got so out of control that kids were climbing out the windows and onto the roof, holes were punched into the walls, and windows were broken. But the absolute worst part was that a teenaged boy got stabbed in the leg. Police responded and broke up the party and got the boy immediate medical attention.

The Elusive Banksy

If there is one valuable lesson to be learned when renting out your home, it is to remove anything of value before renting a room out to strangers. Two roommates from London decided to list their apartment on AirBNB. Together they owned a Banksy print titled "Leopard and Barcode." It was estimated to be worth at least $11,000 at the time it was stolen by one of their AirBNB guests. But the thieves were kind enough to leave them parting gifts; an empty tank that had been filled with laughing gas, smoked marijuana joints and condom wrappers all over the place.

Slasher

Image: iStock / Brankospejs

A New York woman believed that she was renting her Midtown Manhattan apartment to a woman in the military, who said that she was just looking for a little rest and relaxation. Little did she know, that was the furthest thing from the truth. When the police phoned her, she was flabbergasted. The woman claiming to be in the military was actually a prostitute and had gotten into a fight with a man who was arguing with her over the cost of her, well, "services." The man had slashed the prostitute. Luckily, AirBNB swooped in and paid for professional cleaning services and put the woman up in a hotel after the incident occurred.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink

When a property manager rented out a 5 million dollar home in San Fransisco to a guest, they thought that they would keep it in pristine condition. But, as we've seen throughout this horror-filled adventure, that never really seems to happen. When the renter vacated the home, they left behind all kinds of nasty stuff. Over 150 needles were found, and the person staying there had defecated and urinated all over the home with no care for anything. The property manager couldn't even begin to assess how much damage was done to the property. A private cleaning company was called in to clean up the massive mess.

Do you use AirBNB? Have you had any weird experiences? Share them in the comments below!